Remembrance: SD version
by sakura1988
Summary: Its based entirely on the sweetest part of this book called 'Remembrance' by Jude Deveraux... Its really sweet but kinda bloody... r&r pls! Anonymous is now accepted (gomen bout dat thing earlier.. ^^ ehehe..) and I won't update unless someone reviews!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer : Many OCs here but no actual SD characters yet.. but the storyline doesn't belong to me either.. it belongs to Jude Deveraux.. (pronounced as deh-ver-roo). sigh.. I can't write.. gomen for all the mistakes, ya? Happy reading..  
  
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Remembrance - SD version  
  
Kanagawa, 1571  
  
Chapter 1  
  
"There, madam, is a son," Sakuragi Taki said to his pregnant wife of almost nine months. In their nineteen years of marriage, he had said those words to her over and over again when she was pregnant. A simple-minded man of little imagination, his main goal in life is to have a son as tall and handsome as he was.  
  
His beautiful long-and-black-haired and wife, Miko, hand on her enormous belly, sat beside him, her eyes glittering with bright blue fire. She knew better than to make any comments, as it was better to let him go into a rage.  
  
"I have always wanted a son and look what you have given me!" he said angrily, "Daughters! Eight blasted, expensive, good-for-nothing daughters! What else? Two sons. Yes, you have given me two sons. But they are also good-for-nothing and are only two extra mouths to feed!"  
  
It was indeed true that he had two sons but he despised them. Why? They weren't healthy. One had a deformed foot and the other had a lung disease that made him cough continually as though his days were on end.  
  
"Look at him," Taki demanded of his wife, pointing openly at a man across the room. "Why is it that his wives can beget sons and you cannot? His wives are said to give him sons so large they die from birthing them."  
  
Coldly, Miko looked at the man her husband was pointing to. It was Rukawa Kozue, a man who was the size of a bear, unwashed, bad-tempered and uneducated. However, in his youth, he was a great jouster and unseated any man who took him on. Some said that too many lances hitting his helmet scrambled his brain and made him stupid.  
  
Kozue had had three wives, each giving him a son in the exact image of his father, then dying from the birth. He loved to brag that his virility killed them but the women agreed that they died to get away from his filthy body and mind. Both he and Taki had one obvious similarity: they both thought of women as only bodies, put on earth to give them children.  
  
His sons were just as ugly and cruel as he was. Why, even now, one of them was beating he pet dog with a stick and his younger was bullying two of her daughters! The third great lout of a son was somewhere else Miko didn't know and didn't want to know.  
  
Right now, Kozue's newest wife was giving birth somewhere in the castle and Miko, unable to stand the sight of Kozue burying his face in the bosom of one of her maids, stood up to go help her, as the poor woman had been in labour for two days already.  
  
As she stood up, the first pain came to her belly and she knew her time had come. Grabbing the chair, she tried to keep her face from contorting as another pain took her, but she failed. Taki totally ignored her and wouldn't have cared if she gave birth then and there, but the guests sure noticed.  
  
"Hey, Taki! Looks like you're gonna be a father again!!"  
  
"What day does he not become a father?" someone else yelled and everyone laughed.  
  
Then, without looking at her, he said, "Leave me."  
  
"Good of you to grant me your permission to leave," Miko said through gritted teeth.  
  
At the next pain, her maid, Kina, came and helped her go to the chamber where the other woman was birthing Kozue's child. She lay down beside the poor girl. She could clearly see that the poor girl was dying. Even the priest had already given her the last rites. She would not live more than a few hours, he had declared.  
  
The girl was a pretty thing, with tanned skin, honey brown eyes and fiery red hair. Miko held her hand and, feeling the cold skin against hers, twinned her arm around the girl's nearly lifeless ones. All the while, she prayed for a son.  
  
The girl now seemed to be drawing her last breath. Flickering her eyelids open, the girl looked at Miko. Then she spoke, in a low voice so that only Miko could hear her speak.  
  
"My child shall be your child; Your child shall be mine. They will be in one spirit in two bodies. They will live together; they will die together. They will not be able to survive separately."  
  
Her command of the language was bad but in the experience that they were sharing, Miko could understand what she was trying to say. The words the girl had just spoken would be emblazoned on her heart for eternity.  
  
Then the girl screamed, "Take my child!"  
  
Upon hearing those words, the midwife paled, but responded. "I will need a large knife. Make sure its sharp," she commanded.  
  
Everything seemed to happen at once. Just as Miko's child shot down the birth canal, the midwife ripped open the girl's womb to free the suffocating child inside her. Blood was everywhere. It was astounding that such a tiny girl could have so much blood. There seemed to be something wrong with Miko too, so for a while no one could tell whose blood belonged to whom.  
  
In all the commotion, the babies were nearly forgotten. Still attached to their mothers, the babies were dumped on top of each other. One was a boy, an enormous boy, with red hair and skin the color of honey, his eyes a golden brown. He other child was a girl, as white as a dewdrop. The crown of hair on her head was midnight black and her skin was like cream.  
  
Both babies, stunned after the birth, seemed to wrap themselves around each other, clinging to each other as though to seek comfort for what they had just been through. Since no one was holding them aloft and smacking various parts of their bodies, they did not cry.  
  
Now, in the midst of all this chaos and confusion caused by the midwife, came the wet nurse. Honda Kimu was a large woman, perhaps fat, but many said that it was Kimu's huge heart that made her so big. She was nearing thirty years of age and was an old woman, by the standards of the farmers who were her neighbors.  
  
Nine months ago, Kimu had become pregnant and everyone in the village had rejoiced for her. Her 'old' husband, Tama, was teased about it but everyone could tell that he was pleased just as Kimu was. But just four days ago, Kimu had given birth to a set of twins who lived long enough only to be blessed by the priest.  
  
Now, upon seeing the children, she went to work immediately and cut the cord of the boy after tying it off. Her big, strong arms went to pick up the slippery boy but the moment she touched them, their grip on each other tightened. When Kimu gave a gentle tug, they clung tighter. They did not cry. They clung.  
  
Kimu looked at the children in wonder. In her experiences, newborn babies either cried or slept after birth. Some were born hungry and some were not. But she had never seen children who were as wide awake as these two, staring into each other's eyes, their bodies entangled with each other's. If their skin were not different colors, you wouldn't be able to see where one began and ended.  
  
Knowing that they wanted to be together, Kimu scooped them up into her ample arms. The children did not trust her. They seemed to think that she would try to separate them again, so they held each other fiercely.  
  
"Its okay. I won't separate you. I'll protect you. I won't let anyone harm you," Kimu cooed to them. And as though they understood her, they relaxed their grip and softened in Kimu's arms.  
  
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AN: darn, this didn't turn out well, did it? Anyway.. review please! Oops.. sorry, minna! I got a little mixed up in the story, so I had to change it! *bows down apologetically and then runs away from rotten eggs and cabbages* 


	2. Chapter 2

Remembrance: SD version  
  
Chapter 2  
  
"Let me see my son," Miko said, beginning to recover from her near swoon after her birth. She could not understand her reaction for this birth was the same as all the others and in fact, it was less difficult since the child had been rather small. Yet when the midwife's knife touched the girl beside her, she had felt the pain the poor girl was enduring, as though it was she instead who was being cut.  
  
Somehow, Miko knew that the girl had been alive until the birth of her child just to make sure that her child was alive, then only had she died and very happily, too, for she knew that her child would be well taken care of. The girl was at peace, no longer in the body that had been split into nearly half and she felt no pain. It was Miko who felt the pain.  
  
Her body felt as though it were on fire. She was incoherent with pain, hands on her belly, making sure that it was still one. It felt torn and bleeding, ripped open and slashed. The pain was intolerable and she screamed hysterically as her maids and the midwife searched frantically for its source.  
  
Now, with utter confidence, Miko asked to see her son, for she was sure that God would not be so cruel as to give her another daughter, especially after the pain she'd had to endure.  
  
"Well?" Miko demanded with as much strength as she could manage, for she was still weak. "Where is my son?"  
  
None of Miko's maids wanted to suffer the blast of her wrath when she found out she had yet another daughter but Kimu had no qualms.  
  
"You have a beautiful daughter," Kimu said smilingly. At first, Miko refused to hear what was being said. She could not have had another girl.  
  
"There now, isn't she pretty?" Kimu said. "See how white her skin is, how fine her hair? And such pretty eyes! She will be the most beautiful of her daughters, I can tell."  
  
Dazed from pain and stunned with disappointed, all Miko could se was the big golden-skinned boy next to the insignificant black-haired girl.  
  
"Let me see my son! Let me!" Miko cried out, her hands reaching out to take the boy and completely ignoring the girl.  
  
"No!" Kimu said sharply, drawing back. "The children want to be together."  
  
There was something about what Kimu said that brought Miko back to reality. "I want the boy," she whispered weakly. "He should have been mine." She looked around the room. She wanted to see if she could terrorize them all into secrecy and pretend that the boy was hers.  
  
Kina, who had been with Miko since her marriage, was the first to speak.  
  
"The girl," she whispered, pointing to the dead body of the boy's true mother, "had an old woman here. The instant the boy was born, she went to tell the father."  
  
Miko's head reeled with anger at herself and at everyone for not thinking of switching the babies earlier.  
  
"I will try to catch her," Kina said as she opened the door to run after the herald. But Taki was standing outside the door and beside him was Kozue, red-faced and drunk.  
  
"Let me see my son," Kozue said, his voice as full of love as he could make it sound. He meant to take the child, but he didn't like babies and this one was covered in blood and grease and was unnaturally clinging to the white girl.  
  
"How can this worm of a girl breed a son and you cannot?" Taki said, his voice full of venom. For the next few minutes, Taki told his wife what he thought of her, humiliating her in front of her maids and Kozue, whose eyes gleamed with delight. Through all this, Kimu held on fast to the children, wide awake, still alert and still looking into each other's eyes.  
  
For the first time, Taki seemed fully aware of the children, or rather the boy. He took them and pulled them apart. The moment that happened, the children let out great wails such as never heard before in that castle. They were put together again immediately and then were given to Kimu to be fed.  
  
While they were being fed, Taki and Kozue made an agreement. They would exchange children: the boy would be Taki's son and the girl would be Kozue's daughter. Kozue would also take one of Miko's daughters as a new wife: poor little Tsukino, who was only ten years old! What's more, the Kuro Manor, which rightfully belongs to Miko, was to be given as a dowry! Miko was very angry but wisely did not say a word.  
  
Then Kozue suggested betrothing the two. Miko protested against it once more but Taki agreed. Taki also gave Kozue wine, cattle and lead for his roof and also craftsmen to install the roof. He also gave away six goblets to Taki. Miko was outraged for she had brought the goblets to him on their marriage. It was a family heirloom: it was set with rubies and chased with designs of the lives of saints and her family had used them for generations. She had meant to give them to her eldest son but now they were taken away from her.  
  
She stopped looking at her husband and turned her attention to the children instead. She looked at them in hate for they were the cause of her misery. She looked at the boy. He had already killed his mother today and he may as well kill her too for he had robbed an entire family of rightful inheritance and of its future. And for that reason Miko's mind broke.  
  
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AN: Aaahh! It's so nice to have finished another chapter! I cut short a lot of parts but its okay. Sniffle.. Review. ok.. minna? And sLL.. can Kaede be used as a girl's name too? Heehee.. answer, k? byebye! 


	3. Chapter 3

Remembrance: SD Version  
  
Chapter 3  
  
"I will name the boy," Taki said at the dinner party, one full day after Miko had given birth. He took the boy, and the girl, too, in case -err- their powerful wailing began.  
  
"Hold my daughter up, Taki," Kozue said. "You all never thought I could breed such beauty, now, did you?" He winked at the crowd and they howled with laughter.  
  
"What are their names?" someone in the crowd yelled.  
  
"Ah, yes.. Their names..," Taki said with great thought. "I will name him after my father. I give you.. Sakuragi Hanamichi, my.. son!"  
  
The applause was thunderous as people were genuinely glad for him.  
  
"My daughter shall be named..," Kozue paused to think.  
  
Kimu, who was in a corner, came to the front and said, "What about Kaeri, sir? That's a lovely name."  
  
There was a pause for a while and then soon, everyone was agreeing. And so, the girl was known as Rukawa Kaeri. Then Kimu came and took the children to nurse them. Taki announced the children's betrothal and also the marriage of Kozue and Tsukino. There was a bit of grumbling from Kozue, who would have liked to keep the marriage in secret.  
  
But Taki didn't care. He only cared about the precious boy in the corner, suckling hungrily on Kimu's breast. He would never let anything or anyone harm him. He would give him the best of everything. He would give him all.  
  
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Waah! I'm done with this chappie! I'm really sorry it's so short. Haha.. anyway, pls review, minna! Oh, n oso.. sorry 4 changing Kaede's name! Gomen, gomen. 


	4. Chapter 4

Remembrance: SD Version  
  
Chapter 4  
  
Only Miko's maid, Kina, knew the extent of how affected her mistress had been for the past few days. But the moment Taki claimed the boy to be his son, she had given up hope. Now he would never love her. All she had left was her children. HER children not the child of another man and his child-woman wife. Whatever the girl had said was emblazoned on her brain.  
  
Kina was getting to be very frightened for and of her mistress. Every night in her sleep, she would ramble out nonsense and only on the third day did she make sense.  
  
"They will die together.. They must die together.. Fire will cleanse them. Fire will make them die together."  
  
Immediately, she went to the children's tower and found Tama (Kimu's husband, if u don't remember). She told him everything and he said not to worry, for sometimes women said strange things like that after their birthing. Kina, feeling relieved, went back to her mistress. As soon as she left, Tama woke Kimu up (she was sleeping in the same room) and the both of them got the children out of the castle.  
  
Tama began thinking very hard, for if there was a fire, two bodies would have to be found. He ran to the churchyard and dug out the bodies of his twin babies. If there were a fire, there would be bodies of two babies found in the rubble.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Just before dawn, a fire broke out in the old castle. The ancient oak floor burned like paper, making a blaze so hot, the lead melted and rained down on the people below. Attempts to put out the fire were made but soon it became too hot.  
  
"My son! My SON!!!" Taki kept screaming and would have gone straight into the blaze if ten men hadn't held him down. It was two days before the rubble was cool enough to go through and in it were the bodies of two babies. After that, Taki locked himself in a room and emerged a changed man one week later. His hair was now the color of steel and he hated no one, loved no one. His only concern was building a big, beautiful stone house, or castle or mansion and filling it with beautiful things.  
  
He also began visiting his wife and now their relationship was that of two friends. Kozue no longer dealt with the Sakuragi family again. He left them completely alone and the deal was cancelled. Tsukino didn't become his bride, either.  
  
Nearly fifty miles away, Tama and Kimu bought a farm and settled down to raise 'their' two children Tama never told his wife that on the night they left, he had stolen a bag containing six exquisite gold cups from a heavily sleeping Rukawa Kozue. The cups were safely hidden under the floor of the farmhouse, one missing a ruby he had used to pay for the farm, but otherwise intact.  
  
He didn't tell Kimu the truth about the two burned bodies and the gold cups. He told her that Taki gave the money. All she cared about were the two children. She brought them up as her own and soon began to forget that they were not hers.  
  
But Tama never forgot. And everyday, he watches out for strangers in the horizon.  
  
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AN: Hehehe.. Short chapter again! Sorry. I think I cut out a bit too much.. :P lala.. review pls! ^^ ehehehe.. Thanx 2 all those who reviewed in the last chappie. err.. This is not exactly yaoi.. not not yaoi either.. I dunno... maybe cos Kaeri's a girl.. Sigh.. gomen if its too confusing! I oso confused liow. 


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